Matt Hardy Talks Possible Role In NXT, If Vince McMahon Asked Him To Return To WWE

Matt Hardy spoke with PWInsider since parting ways with WWE, earlier this month. During the conversation, Hardy touched on the end of his most recent WWE run, not staying in WWE simply for the money, House Hardy never becoming a series, and if he'd return to WWE if Vince McMahon were to ask him back.

At the end of February, there were reports of Hardy potentially heading to NXT, possibly as a talent and working behind-the-scenes. Matt was asked how that situation played out.

"It was kind of like a dual role," Hardy confirmed. "It was to maybe do something in NXT and be Broken Matt and maybe have some sort of stable there and help some guys. But still my whole big thing was like for these last three or four years that I have left to do this, I want to be involved in a prominent role. I don't want to be the champion. I don't want to be undefeated. I want to help people along the way, but I still want to be utilized in a prominent way. I think Hunter had a vision of making that happen. There was a talk of doing that and starting in a backstage role as a Producer, maybe even do some stuff creatively.

"It would kind of be like a double role and I'd make a little more money. And that was the mindset behind that. It was kind of like, I really?I appreciate Hunter because I think triple H was really trying hard to keep me there. And really I didn't want to leave WWE. I wanted to stay with WWE. But if they didn't have something for me creatively that I could do in the next three or four years, it was very important to me just because I love it so much that I'm maximizing it the most of them the last few years."

Over the last couple months it was no secret that the reason Hardy was hesitant to re-sign with WWE was over creative issues, finances were never really the main topic of conversation. Hardy was asked at this stage of his career, why not just take the money from WWE and simply be part of the system?

"The money is still going to be greater outside even with what I'm going to end up doing, especially with the collaboration of events I'm going to be doing, but the one thing I want to say is that I love this," Hardy responded. "I mean like the reason I got into this wasn't to make $1 million. It's because it was my dream and my passion and something I love. It's like I know physically I feel very good now and I know what I'm capable of and I know how I have to be utilized in a certain way. It's just I have to get into an environment where I can be utilized like that.

"The reason I just walked away is like I know I can do more and with sometimes with WWE it's a huge system. I have a great respect for it. It's an enormous machines obviously all across the world, but if you are kind of in Vince's mind in a certain role, that's where he's going to keep you and you can't get out of it. I want to get into an environment where I can kind of excel and do other things."

After Bray Wyatt and Matt Hardy disappeared from TV, House Hardy became a potential idea for a series on the WWE Network. A Halloween special was taped back in 2018, but the plan to put out a full series never came to fruition, ultimately due to Vince McMahon not being able to give a straight answer on the show.

"I think there was just so much concern whenever I had left TV, whenever Bray and I had wrapped up [our storyline] and we were going to be off for a couple of months, they've been pitching to do specials: House Hardy, House Hardy, House Hardy," Matt recalled. "But then they said they couldn't ever get a clear cut answer from Vince, or they couldn't get a meeting with Vince.

"And then like they're saying, 'Well if you come back as a different character then it's going to be our ass and we don't want to do that.' So, that's why that never came to be. I was just like, I went in to [Vince McMahon's office] and he was okay with it, but then they can never get confirmation on their own. It is such a big company, so many moving parts and nobody wants to infuriate Vince."

Despite becoming a free agent, Hardy made it clear from the start this doesn't mean he's not ever going to return to WWE. Matt was asked if Vince hypothetically came back to him right now and said he'd give Matt whatever he wants to come back, would he go? He didn't rule it out, but a lot of "assurances" would have to be made.

"I mean there would be a possibility, but I would need assurances," Hardy said. "This is really important to me, like how I do these next three or four years. I'm not 25 or 30 years old. I have some good matches left in me, but I don't have a good match every day of the week, and I can't do it four or five days a week like I used to. I just don't bounce back like that."

Since leaving WWE, Hardy has already worked with The Young Bucks, who appeared in his Free the Delete series by visiting the Hardy Compound. The visit has also been referenced on the latest Being the Elite.